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Thursday, May 03, 2007

LOST: Season 3 Episode 19 - Brig

I'm really starting to feel like a broken record! But seriously, this show has been FANTASTIC! Maybe I'm just getting over my initial enjoyment of last night's episode but for now, I have to say it may have been one of the best episodes EVER on LOST! Season 3 definitely had a slow start, but man have we hit the pay dirt now! Week after week of ANSWERS, it seems! The one we got tonight was one we've been speculating about since season 1. And it's always nice when we end up being right about something! But, the WAY they went about the big reveal was some very engaging TV! When the LOST screen popped up at the end of the episode, I literally just sat there in amazement at this show's creative streak and said out loud................."WOW!" Now....just because I think this was one of the best episodes ever, does NOT mean this will translate into the greatest blog ever! Mainly, because I'm just as confused as ever! But as always, that doesn't mean I won't try!

In "Brig" we find ourselves back with John Locke. Our non-traditional flashbacks show us the 8 Days that we've missed with Locke, Cooper, Ben and the whole Others Clan while we've been pursuing equally important storylines back at Othersville and eventually the beach! Locke recruits Sawyer under the false pretense that he has infiltrated the OTHERS and needs help killing Ben (come on...we all knew he was lying from the second he said it!). And of course the story of our Parachutist, Naomi continues as our favorite castaways try to keep information from getting to their former trusted leader, Jack. Let's dive in!

The Missing 8 DaysAhh yes, we love when Days pass by with a lack of information don't we? I still say we're missing a day or 2 of information after the HATCH imploded. How did Eko get in the cave? Was Locke just lying in the jungle with no voice for 2 days? And well....Desmond's whole time travel thing! But alas, we're not focusing on those today! These 8 days have Ben putting Locke on the path of enlightenment. To what end? Well, that is yet to be seen. But apparently, the others (and some former tail section survivors) seem to think Locke is very SPECIAL. But for some reason, for Locke to be ENLIGHTENED, he must first show signs that he can be trusted. That he's not the same person he used to be. He must KILL his father, who mysteriously just showed up on the island. I guess we still don't know if Locke's father was just another manifestation of the island. But it sure seemed real! So for purposes of this Blog I'm going to stay with the assumption that he was indeed REAL!

8 Days Ago

Cooper bites Locke's hand and leaves a big gash.

Ben asks Locke to join the OTHERS as they leave Othersville. He mentions where they are going is an OLD place.

3 Days Ago

Others are in make-shift tents. Living the way Locke had suggested to Ben. A life without technology...living off what the island provides.

We see Cindy, our favorite flight attendant, again who seems completely comfortable co-existing with the Others these day. Which, I think everyone would agree, we still need more information with what happened when Cindy and the kids were taken! But the key for now is that everyone is excited by Locke's presence.

Ben, all of a sudden is able to walk again (with the help of a cane). Is this because he embraced the island? He credits being around Locke to his recovery. Is it the truth though? or is it all for a false pretense of making Locke feel special and wanted and with purpose? Because all we've seen of Locke's prior existence was his search for belonging and purpose.

We see Ben received Juliet's recording and announces to Locke his plan that he's going to take the pregnant women. Seems like a test of some sorts to see where John's loyalty is. Or could just be another game. Maybe he WANTS Locke to get the information to the castaway camp. Ben speaks again of Locke's POTENTIAL, but cannot reveal anything until Daddy is dead.

You know how much I love books on the show, don't you? Well Ben brought some with him in his tent. One was "WORD POWER" which we've seen before. Apparently, he brings this with him everywhere he goes. A new arrival is John Lescroart's "The Oath" a criminal thriller that takes place in a house of healing. You getting any insight from this? Yeah..me either.

Locke's father has been tied up to an ancient column that looks like it was used for ritualistic sacrifices. The ancient appearance of this column seems like it's meant to draw comparisons to the 4 toed statue we saw in season 2's finale. We're still nowhere closer on learning exactly HOW old this island is, and what it was used for. But there's definitely a theme they're trying to get across here. The producers even said that they placed the Adam and Eve skeletons in the CAVE in season 1 just so when they reveal exactly what's going on on the island.....that they can prove they knew what they were doing right from the beginning. And for some reason..it seems like the AGE of the island or its inhabitants plays a big role!

At Night Fall - Locke is put to the test to kill his father. He fails and Ben humiliates him in front of the whole camp "He is not who we thought he was." What was up with Cooper saying "I'll be here rest of the week if you change mind?" Supposed to be a joke in passing? Maybe...but then why did Ben knock him out so quickly? He did the same thing in the Closet when Cooper tried to tell Locke where they were. Are we supposed to be harping on these 2 interesting moments? Cooper seems to tell us where he thinks they are in the present day. Is that what he was going to originally tell Locke? Like I said...for purposes of this BLOG...that's what I'm assuming. But, we always have to consider the alternative! We just don't exactly know what that alternative would be!

2 Days ago

The gash in Locke's hand is completely healed in 6 days. They just keep dropping these little tidbits in the episodes to remind us of the healing powers of this island. Especially with John Locke. Hopefully the answers are coming soon!

Richard Alpert informs Locke that Ben's show the night before was intentionally to embarrass John. He doesn't want the people thinking John is special. Apparently, word got out to all that there was a man with a broken spine on flight 815 that could walk again. Richard seemed to be clearly complaining about Ben's leadership and how they are all bogged down with the Fertility issues on the island. Apparently, they were promised BIGGER things when they signed up for Island living. Or as Alpert suggested....MORE IMPORTANT Reasons. Reminds me of when Juliet tried to have Ben killed during surgery. It seems that there is some disagreement within the Others community. Then again, Richard talking to John could've entirely been part of Ben's strategy. In any case, Locke is given information on James "Sawyer" Ford. If Locke can't kill him...there's someone else who has been dying to!

Yesterday

Ben and the Others leave Locke behind. Ben instructs Locke not to come unless he's carrying his father's body on his back. I wonder if there's another reason Ben wanted Locke's Dad dead. Not just for Locke to continue on the path of enlightenment. Just seems that he was very persistent that it needed to be done. Of course, by doing it in this fashion, it just gives Ben more power over Locke and his future decisions. Ben withholding information until key opportunities seems to be what he does. Remember him holding information about Juliet's sister? Lying to the survivors about being Henry Gale until he was able to get into Jack and Locke's head? I'm sure there are other examples. But we'll just go with those for now.

Sawyer, Locke and Sawyer Showdown

Before we get into the reveal below...let me share some of my quotes with you from previous blogs.

March 30, 2006 - Lockdown"So Locke's "Dad" conned a family out of $700,000. Can we assume that this is SAWYER's family? (which would definitely date this flashback quite a few years since Sawyer was a kid when his Dad killed his wife then shot himself) There were rumors before that Locke and Sawyer might be related after Locke knew Sawyer's real name, "James Ford" but we got nothing to tie this together by finding out Locke's Dad's name is Anthony Cooper (unless it's another alias). But a clean way to tie it together would be if Locke's "DAD" is the conman Sawyer was/is looking for. And, hmmm maybe if he DID catch an Oceanic flight out of LA, maybe HE's on the island too! (okay..now I'm just getting crazy!) "

Crazy indeed! Crazy how close I was! Here's another one:

March 22nd 2007 "The Man From Tallahassee"We know Locke's dad is a conman and so is Sawyer.....and one of the running theories in LOST is that Locke's dad might be the REAL Sawyer. You know the one that conned James Ford's (who we know as sawyer on the island) mother causing his father to kill her and then himself...and causing a life of pain for James....also causing him to become a conman himself while hunting down the REAL sawyer. Wouldn't it be convenient that the island brought him the thing he wanted the most too? A chance to kill the man that ruined his life?

Ok ok okay...I'm not claiming to be a genius or anything. A lot of people had the theory. But come on...even predicting he might be on the island!?!? That was insane! Anyway, as stated earlier Locke has recruited James "Sawyer" Ford under the false pretense (and supposed audience false pretense) that he needs help killing Ben. Here's what went down in this fantastic storyline!

First of all, we must note that Kate and Sawyer are shacking up like bunnies these days. If what Juliet says is true about men's fertility on the island and what Ben said is true that he wants to take the pregnant WOMEN (plural)....then I don't see how Kate is going to get out of this season without being pregnant!

Locke continues his digging for information from Sawyer. Explains what information was in his file stating that his parents were killed when he was a boy and that is all. Of course, then he added the fact that it didn't mention WHY Daddy killed Mommy then killed himself. Hmmm..Locke seems to be learning manipulation skills from his new mentor Ben! He also starts asking again why he picked the name SAWYER. Sawyer also explains how he killed the wrong man in Sydney (which still...how did the others have that intel??). All nice reminder information for those people who don't have fantastic blogs to read where the writer force feeds previous quotes from previous blogs to tie things together!

By the way...quick glimpse of Sawyer's file shows a Police Report in French. Prop error? Or a hint at a future flashback tying Sawyer and Sayid together or Sawyer and Shannon possibly?

Locke takes Sawyer to the BLACK ROCK where he claims to have hidden Ben. Great to see the ol' slave ship again! Locke thinks that the slaves were brought here to mine. Mine for what???

Sure enough Locke had set up a trap to force Sawyer to confront their mutual nemesis. A man that goes by many names including Anthony Cooper and TOM Sawyer. (not sure if we ever had the first name. And idiot me may never have even thought of it!) Loved the "Huck Finn" was already taken line.

But before we get into all of that, let's divulge some information Cooper gave us about how he ended up on the island. From his perspective, we must assume, he never saw a coastline and has no idea they're on an island. He was in Tallahassee driving down I-10 when someone rammed his car from behind and crashed him right into a median going 70mph. All he remembers is being picked up by the paramedics and the guy placing the IV in his arm smiling. Next thing he knows he's in a closet looking up at his "DEAD" son. Not dead because Cooper threw him out a window but dead because Flight 815 was found and the passengers were all dead! (more on that in next section). Cooper assumes he is also dead and in HELL. So now we replace our purgatory theories with HELL theories! Fantastic! I'll just go out on a limb and say they are NOT in hell! But the bigger thing to focus on is how he got to the island. UNCONCSIOUSLY. There seems to be a recurring theme that no one really recalls arriving at the island. When they wake up...they're already here! Of course, we've seen the tail section of the plane crash, we saw a splash in the water that was supposed to be a helicopter. But Juliet was brought to the island willingly unconscious strapped into a bed in the submarine. We had speculations that she really didn't get there via Sub. And now Cooper was in a car accident and ended up on the island? (pending he's telling the truth) And does the car accident tie into the "Bring me the Man from Tallahassee" order that Ben gives Tom? I think we have to assume it does. But how were they able to get him so quickly? Granted...Ben claims that LOCKE brought him here. But here is where I call B.S. on Ben! That is...until Ben proves to me that there IS a metaphorical Magic Box, I'm going to assume that the others can freely summon people from off the island. How? I have absolutely no idea. The only other explanation is Cooper was lying and was there all along. Or that it was, in fact, a manifestation of the island (i.e. smoke monster).

By the way, while Sawyer is confronting Locke's Dad, Rousseau just happens to show up at the Black Rock looking for Dynamite! Hmmmm what does she need THAT for? Last we saw her, she was stalking her daughter, Alex. We have to assume that something EXPLOSIVE might be happening in a possible rescue attempt by the season 3 finale. What else would she need dynamite for? I'm intrigued!

Back to the Sawyers. I absolutely LOVED this scene. Sawyer finally giving his letter to the man he's been hunting his whole life. Cooper reading the letter non-challantly and then tearing up the letter. Making comments about James's Mother (whose name is Mary). I think I was ready to strangle the guy myself, which is exactly what Sawyer does! Man, what a graphic and haunting scene! But well written and fitting scene. I mean, when the fans want a PAYOFF, that is what we're looking for! Absolutely fantastic. All of this followed by a heart-felt THANK YOU from John Locke. Perfect scene. RIP Anthony Cooper.

Key moment we should consider - Sawyer knows about Locke's prior paralysis. Will he tell everyone else? How will it factor into everyone's future perception of Mr. Locke? (namely, Jack).

Locke, although now on his own journey (not with the survivor camp or the others camp), provided the Baby-Napping intel he gathered from Ben (Beach Raid in 3 days) as well as gave Sawyer the recording proving Juliet is a mole. Considering Juliet is playing both sides....this should prove to be very interesting in the final episodes of the season.

Don't Tell JackPretty much seemed like the theme was that Jack was with the others for however long and is very friendly with Juliet. And EVERYONE except Kate was showing no trust in giving him the information on their latest vistor, Naomi. Of course, once you tell one person, accidents happen and eventually the information will get to everyone. Some very interesting tidbits provided by Naomi as well as Jack and Juliet. Here they are:

Naomi's full name is Naomi Dorrit (I checked the closed captioning!)

Helicopter took off from a search and recovery team freighter 80 nautical miles west of the island.

She is on a mission to find Desmond. Hired by Penelope Widmore (as suspected) and had a set of coordinates to a location in the middle of the ocean. They thought it was a fools errand. This seems to confirm she is not lying as Penny had the coordinates in the final scene of season 2. Also seems to confirm that the island is NOT a moving target as previously theorized.

She claims the helicopter just stopped functioning prior to crashing (instruments started spinning). Seems very much like an Electro-magnetic Pulse effect doesn't it?

Sayid got a new toy to play with in the Satellite Phone as predicted. They are going to try and communicate with the rescue freighter. All static right now even though it had a few bars of service. Perhaps they will go to the radio tower to kill Rousseau's transmission? Isn't that what was blocking all other signals before?

But the big and disturbing news? Naomi continued to explain how Flight 815 was found and that there were no survivors. They found the ENTIRE Plane in an ocean trench 4 miles deep off the coast of Bali. In case anyone is wondering where Bali is, it's not far from Australia. Kudos to Google Maps for the assistance!Naomi says that they sent those crazy robots (like the ones we saw in Titanic) into Flight 815 and ALL of the bodies were found in the plane and dead. HUH?????? I still smell cover-up. I have no idea how they could replicate bodies (except in the form of manifestations), but how would an ENTIRE plane end up 4 miles underwater practically undamaged? I could not be more confused yet completely intrigued in this new twist! I want more information! And I'm sure more is coming by the finale. It better if we have to wait until January for more LOST!

And of course the final little tidbit we need to mention is after Kate explains to Jack and Juliet (unwillingly) what is going on. Jack, instead of worrying about everyone not trusting him, asks how they are going to contact the freighter. Kate mentions the satellite phone. Jack and Juliet look at each other. Juliet "I think we should tell her" Jack "No" Juliet "I THINK we should TELL her!" Jack "NOT YET!" WHAT???? Ok, so this kinda ties into what some of the commenters posted about before. It seems that Jack and Juliet are conspiring on SOMEthing. Maybe they are BOTH on the same mission. Jack said he trusts Juliet. Juliet hates Ben. Perhaps they are both playing everyone for fools for the greater good of the survivors? I mean...what could Juliet be so persistent in telling Kate? I remain convinced that whatever Jack is up to...it is for a GOOD outcome for everyone; not a selfish or evil plan. UGH....I want to know more now!!!!

Whew....that's it folks. I am still in awe of this episode. 3 years of build-up is what leads to fantastic episodes like this. Anyone else rank this one up as high as I do? Are you all looking forward to the Ben flashback episode next week? We keep hoping to get information on that crazy DHARMA Initiative and the purge. Perhaps that is next week! Then we'll shift our focus finally to Charlie the next week and probably will learn his fate. All leading up to the 2 hour Jack-centric finale where we hopefully will learn what he's been conspiring to do all season!

Hope you enjoyed my ramblings as always and look forward to hearing all of yours! See you Next week!

Looove this recap!! From now on im not waiting for EW to post theirs, im comming straight to you, much much better...just one thing thou, Could you please not talk about whats coming up next? I mean, i know im going to sound like a freak but i dont even watch the previous because i dont want to know what's going to happen next (i think the whole point of Lost is to surprise us), so please please please keep up the good work, again looooove your recap but if your going to mention something about whats comming next week just put a warning sign for the rest of us who wants to keep the suspense going ;)

lol thanks for the feedback. i'm usually pretty good with not posting spoilers and if i do...i black them out so you have to mouse over. if i do post spoilers they are mild (like whose flashback is coming up) i'll be more careful in the future.

Mike, I've been reading your blogs for the past couple of weeks and it's spectacular. It's great how you pull everything from past episodes together.

Question for you . . . At the very end of the episode right before the LOST screen showed up, did you hear anyone say "K"? Possibly 'what' in spanish? I don't know if it was just from the channel i was watching because it was very strange. i actually went back on the DVR to make sure it was really a noise from the show and it was.

Strange things like that always seem to pop up somewhere down the line. Then again, it could of just been an accident.

Keep up the good work, homie.

Last thing, what are your thoughts about some sort of time warp on the island to explain the healing powers as well as all the ancient artifacts?- 231

I heard the voice at the end of the episode as well. It is after Locke throws his dad's body over his shoulder and starts to walk -- it sounds like someone says 'hey' or something. I was like "whoa! did Locke's dad just say something?" I'm not sure if it was a screw-up or not...

Curtis...is that you Sminkey? lol how's it going? Thanks for the props on the blog.

I also heard that glitch at the end of the episode. I think it was the Powerball Loterry guy. Did you notice there was a bit of a glitch in the broadcast right before it happened? I definitely think it was just an ABC screw-up.

as for a Timewarp? I have no idea....I've definitely theorized that they are in some alternate dimension way back in season 1...but then I just started to think...they probably want to keep the overall theory relatively simple for the Masses to grasp (even though the masses are dropping off from watching the show in huge numbers). So I have to think there is going to be some pretty simple explanation to it all.

But hey? what do I know? lol we all have our theories!

Thanks everyone again on the compliments. Take it easy though. Anyone that knows me knows that I let this stuff build my ego way too much! lol

You could be right. It could be very significant. I've gotten the same feedback several times now. I guess my whole philosophy is....they've already gone down that path. Season 2 we interrogated "Henry Gale" for the 2nd half of the season. We had to decide whether he was lying or telling the truth. This has established a lack of trust amongst the survivors in ANYONE that they are not familiar. And as we've seen with Jack, even people they ARE familiar with that have come in contact with The Others. This is why Sayid is skeptical of Naomi, and deservedly so. We have to believe that Naomi's arrival is setting up season 4 and a whole new level to the Lost Mythology. We are still in the dark about the Widmore Corporation and Penny Widmore as well. We are now in the dark about what the outside world thinks about Flight 815. There's plenty of NEW territory to attack there that wouldn't be re-hashing things we've already done (i.e. The survivors interrogate someone and find out he/she is lying). We have to remember that at the end of season 2.....2 portugeuse people in the arctic detected electromagnetic activity when the hatch imploded and the sky turned purple. Penny Widmore receives a phone call discovering "They Found it" we can assume these are coordinates. Naomi tells the survivors she was following coordinates received by Penny Widmore to the middle of the ocean on a supposed "fool's errand."

Now, I'm not saying there isn't more than meets the Eye to the whole Penny storyline. LOST has proven to us in the past that they like to throw twists at us. But I think we're on the CUSP of learning exactly WHO The OTHERS are. Season 3, confirmed by the producers, was to be ALL ABOUT the others...just like season 2 was all about The Hatch. Season 4 has to introduce a new element to us so that the show doesn't keep regurgitating the same storylines and keeps propelling us towards the final answers.

I heard the noise and noticed the screen glitch at the end of the episode too. Come to think of it, I've noticed my screen do a little skip at the end of most the episodes lately, starting with the Nikki/Paulo episode. I guess it would make sense that it's a problem with ABC, but why does it keep happening every week? Maybe it isn't a coincidence.

Mike, As LOST gets more and more complicated and convoluted, I keep thinking that the answer to the mystery will get simpler and easier to identify if we back out and look at the big picture. I know the producers have said it is NOT Purgatory; have they said this is NOT the Garden of Eden (or something similar)? I can make a pretty convincing case (with LOST references) that it "is".

No, lol...they haven't said anything about the Garden of Eden. Although, I have heard it compared to that before. I'd be interested to hear your theory on it! That would be a pretty interesting spin if they went in that direction. Especially with the dawn of the human species vs. the inability to reproduce on the island.

I'm just not sure how closely they will tie the answers to the mysteries of LOST to a contextual story from the Bible. They do love referencing the Bible though! And there seems to be a struggle between Science and Faith on the show. So maybe the solutions will satisfy both extremes! Who knows??!

I believe that the noise/glitch was a tech from ABC saying 'ok' and that it is due to the fact that Lost runs to 11:01 at night. The network is switching from the hi-def broadcasting to regular for the nightly news.

"What's interesting to me is that IF the world believes that the 815 wreckage was found and there were no survivors - that means that Walt and Michael never got back ! "

ahhhhhhhh touche' never even thought of that! I have a feeling we'll be hearing about Michael and Walt before season's end. Very good point!

As for "the Man from Tallahassee" that was actually in the episode titled "The Man From Tallahassee" where Locke supposedly blew up the Sub. It was when he was holding Ben at gunpoint...he went in the closet with alex...and Tom came in...ben asked Tom to fetch "the man from T"

I'm liking the Garden of Eden thing. I either forgot about the drawings on the cave from seas 1 - or didn't pick up on them being Adamn & Eve.

Science vs Faith seems to always come up, as does right vs wrong, and what is good/evil.

Eve screwed up Eden by eatting the forbidden fruit. Dharma is trying to right the world by starting it over - by populating Eden again.

But their use of technogy is back-firing on them, hence the women not being able to become pregnant. Which sets them up to battle themselves to re-settle Eden. Force it with technology, or let it happen. Can a fabulous thing like Eden happen if you do bad things to make it happen ??

This is what I have been thinking recently is the reality of the show.

Yeah, I like some of the ideas you have going there. I like the concept of your theory as long as the island isn't ACTUALLY the former Garden of Eden. If the DHARMA Initiatives were experiments at creating a perfect society...destroying the rest of the world and starting over....I'm all for that! (not for their cause..just for the theory! lol) The facts seem to fit for that (minus all the supernatural elements going on which still need to be scientifically explained within reason).

It makes sense and a lot better than some people's MATRIX theories that I keep hearing all of the time! As far as I'm concerned...them all being plugged into a Virtual Reality system is just as cheesy as Purgatory!

As for the Adam and Even skeletons. I don't recall any paintings on the wall. When Jack first brings a crew to the cave (charlie, locke, and kate)....they find the skeletons and Locke calls them "our very own Adam and Eve".....so they have just been labeled the Adam and Eve skeletons since then!

I'm sure everyone saw the news that LOST will end after 3 more seasons of 16 episodes run from February to May (which is essentially 2 24 episodes seasons...but over 3 years instead!). Right now I'm still trying to come to terms with not getting all of the answers until 2010...I'm sure by Thursday I'll be totally excited and all onboard!

Okay, this is the first time I'm really ready to say it...WOW! I loved this episode! And thank you Richard for telling Locke about Ben's motivations and giving him the file about Sawyer (the fake one)! Not sure if any of the rest of the "Death of the Real Sawyer" would've happened without that key insight from Richard. And I don't think Richard is just a plant for Ben; he seems genuinely disgruntled and may eventually turn into another Juliet.

That is, if we can trust Juliet. You know I do! Come hell or high water!

The Sawyer/Locke/Sawyer mini-plot was great writing and that paid off with some fine acting that sold the story. I've stated before that murder is not an offense anyone should forgive easily, if ever. But we all know there are degrees (literally) of murder, and then there's manslaughter and then there's justifiable homicide. You can make the argument that Eko killing that child-stealer way back when was justifiable homicide, and that Sawyer's unfortunate case of mistaken identity might have only been manslaughter (though it was probably second-degree murder). Kate's of course was just plain first-degree, the worst of the worst.

Anyway, Sawyer killing Sawyer was certainly a crime of passion and I certainly found it justified! I guess I'm gonna have to get used to "normal" people killing other people on this island, because it's the damned island and they've all gone off the rails. And I can dig that craziness, as a work of fiction, and still find sympathy for the killers.

What the hell's going on with Rousseau? I hope that dynamite leads to her reuniting with Alex, cuz I really need to see that happen before the season ends! I can't watch that drag on and wait for another season to arrive (five minutes after this season ends, haha)!

Naomi still alleging that Flight 815 was found at the bottom of the ocean is beginning to sound more plausible, and if that's the case, it should set a bunch of other wheels in motion. The airline itself, the lawyers for the families, the international media, and most of all, the crash investigators…meaning the government. Now all of that might be too pragmatic for the showrunners, so they could just as easily gloss over it, but if they were looking for a convenient way to tie in another entity…perhaps yet another threat…to the island, they certainly have one.

Ooh, I can't wait to hear the juicy secret Juliet and Jack have been harboring! I'm not smart enough to guess what it is, but I can make a broad guarantee (ha, nothing can be guaranteed about Lost!) that it will be something wicked about the Others!

Miles, I know you're into season 4 now so I'll just make some short comments here.

Glad you loved this episode. As I mentioned it is one of my favorites. I look at an episode like this and still can't believe people rank season 3 as the worst season. It may house the show's worst episode (which we disagree on which one that is lol) but overall it was just awesome. All of your observations are great as always, but you already know the answer to most of them by now! :-)